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The desert called so we pulled out the long boats and headed down the Baja way, first loading enough boats to take full advantage of both coasts, then cramming the truck full of every camping comfort it would take, right down to a hand-cranked margarita blender.

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Sean Morley knows a few things about going fast. He honed his forward stroke technique as a flatwater sprint racer on the British junior national team, but has made his biggest mark traveling far and fast in challenging conditions. He’s held speed records for crossing the Irish Sea, circumnavigating Vancouver Island, and paddling 4,500 miles around Great Britain and Ireland, solo.

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The Jondachi is special. Ask any Tena paddler what their favorite run is, where they cut their teeth, where they go with their friends, where they suggest recently arrived foreign kayakers go: the Upper Jondachi. Kayaking is young in Ecuador. Truly, it’s in its infancy. To lose the Jondachi to a dam would be to lose a great teacher.

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“Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks offer some of the best paddling opportunities in the world for all abilities -- to live so near to these amazing rivers and yet be unable to experience them is a constant frustration for me and many other residents and visitors.”

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A month into their ambitious nine-month, 5,200-mile route, the six-man Rediscover North America crew highlights the first 27 days paddling up the Atchafalaya River, and crossing over to begin the long slog up the mighty Mississippi.

Sea Kayak in British Columbia

A paddling photo essay from B.C.'s Hornby Island

Sea Kayak along the Island of Hornby

This late-winter day on Vancouver Island was nothing like the day prior, when a snowstorm swept the island and we took to the steep slopes and moss-draped pines of nearby Mount Washington, or the next day, finding heavy surf on the island’s distant west side south of Tofino. C&K staff photographer Aaron Schmidt and I found the island’s central Comox Valley to be the perfect launching pad for our June 2013 issue sea kayak review (“Day-trippers: 6 plastic performers put to the touring test”). As the locals say, there’s plenty to paddle here, but you’re an hour or two “from out-of-this-world good” sea paddling of every kind. And it was just a short drive to a short ferry, then island hopping on another even smaller ferry to outlying Hornby Island. The clear waters of the laid-back island, preserved almost entirely by provincial parks and known for its music festivals and local wineries, offered the fitting finale to our test of boats built for a casual tour. Check out the June issue on newsstands now and stay tuned for the video rundown of each day-touring kayak reviewed. — DS